Wonderfest
Encyclopedia
Wonderfest is a nonprofit California corporation dedicated to informal science education. Wonderfest seeks to inspire and nurture a deep sense of wonder about the world. Through provocative public discourse about science, Wonderfest aspires to stimulate curiosity, promote careful reasoning, challenge unexamined beliefs, and encourage life-long learning. Wonderfest achieves these ends primarily through public science gatherings in the San Francisco Bay Area and through online science discourse & video.
Wonderfest achieved corporate independence in September 2011. During the preceding fourteen years, Wonderfest was an educational project of, first, San Francisco University High School
, then, The Branson School
. From 1998 to 2010, Wonderfest produced an annual science festival—the first such community-wide event in the United States—that presented a series of expert dialogues on topics of scientific controversy. The topics were varied, covering astronomy
, biology
, psychology
, physics
, etc. In 2011, this festival was supplanted by the Bay Area Science Festival
, headquartered at the University of California, San Francisco
.
Wonderfest, subtitled "The Bay Area Beacon of Science," is dedicated to the memory of Carl Sagan
. Since 2002 it has awarded the Carl Sagan Prize for Science Popularization.
Its board of directors now guides its development:
Wonderfest achieved corporate independence in September 2011. During the preceding fourteen years, Wonderfest was an educational project of, first, San Francisco University High School
San Francisco University High School
San Francisco University High School is an academically focused, college preparatory, private high school located in the Pacific Heights neighborhood of San Francisco, California...
, then, The Branson School
The Branson School
The Branson School in Ross, California is a private, co-educational, college-preparatory day school with 320 students enrolled in grades 9 through 12....
. From 1998 to 2010, Wonderfest produced an annual science festival—the first such community-wide event in the United States—that presented a series of expert dialogues on topics of scientific controversy. The topics were varied, covering astronomy
Astronomy
Astronomy is a natural science that deals with the study of celestial objects and phenomena that originate outside the atmosphere of Earth...
, biology
Biology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
, psychology
Psychology
Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior. Its immediate goal is to understand individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases. For many, the ultimate goal of psychology is to benefit society...
, physics
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
, etc. In 2011, this festival was supplanted by the Bay Area Science Festival
Bay Area Science Festival
The Bay Area Science Festival is a series of public science events happening throughout the nine San Francisco Bay Area counties from October 29 through November 6, 2011. The BASF program features over 100 events. The biggest gatherings, "Discovery Days," happen at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma,...
, headquartered at the University of California, San Francisco
University of California, San Francisco
The University of California, San Francisco is one of the world's leading centers of health sciences research, patient care, and education. UCSF's medical, pharmacy, dentistry, nursing, and graduate schools are among the top health science professional schools in the world...
.
Wonderfest, subtitled "The Bay Area Beacon of Science," is dedicated to the memory of Carl Sagan
Carl Sagan
Carl Edward Sagan was an American astronomer, astrophysicist, cosmologist, author, science popularizer and science communicator in astronomy and natural sciences. He published more than 600 scientific papers and articles and was author, co-author or editor of more than 20 books...
. Since 2002 it has awarded the Carl Sagan Prize for Science Popularization.
Its board of directors now guides its development:
- Jacob Bien, PhD candidate in Statistics, Stanford University
- Jack Conte, musician & videographer
- Kelly Fehr, V.P., Director of Business Development for Science & Technology, HOK
- Douglas Kramlich, Principal of Krambo Corporation
- Juliana Gallin, creator of Ask a Scientist
- Eugenie ScottEugenie ScottEugenie Carol Scott is an American physical anthropologist who has been the executive director of the National Center for Science Education since 1987...
, Executive Director of the National Center for Science Education - Eric Yao, Technical Director of Wonderfest and CEO of Picturoo
- Richard ZareRichard ZareRichard Neil Zare is an American physical chemist. He is Professor of Chemistry at Stanford University.-Education:Zare earned his B.A. in 1961 and his Ph.D...
, Professor and Chemistry Department Chair, Stanford University